Wyatt Teller Believes Browns Rookie Zak Zinter Has Right Mindset

The Browns selected Zak Zinter with their third round pick in last month's draft.

Cleveland Browns guard Wyatt Teller, center, works against linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah during / Jeff Lange / USA TODAY NETWORK

If first impressions are everything, Browns rookie third-round pick Zak Zinter is already making a good one on his teammates.

With Cleveland opening up OTAs this week, it was Zinter's first chance to participate in on-field work with the entire team. He's already caught the attention of players like veteran Wyatt Teller, who he's hoping to learn from.

“Great kid," Teller said. "My initial thoughts – works hard, coming off an injury, can’t tell, which is good. You know, obviously he has a little sock over it, but he’s tough and I love that. I commend him on that. There’s a lot to learn. When I got into the league I was a fifth-round draft pick, so he’s better than me. But he’s a great kid and I know he’s going to work hard.”

Dec 31, 2022; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Michigan Wolverines offensive lineman Zak Zinter (65) against / Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Zinter spent most of his pre-draft process recovering from a broken leg that he suffered in the final gale of the regular season against top rival Ohio State. Now that he's healed up he's able to the ground running during the Browns spring program, as he hopes to get acclimated to the NFL.

The Michigan product is in a great situation for being able to just learn. With Teller and 10-year veteran Joel Bitonio stationed as cornerstones along the Browns offensive line, there is no pressure on Zinter to be thrust into a starting role too soon. There may not be a better duo of guards to absorb information from in the NFL.

"I think he hit the nail on the head early when he was drafted," said Teller. "I think he said something along the lines of, you know, 'I'm coming in behind two unbelievable players. I have so much to learn from them and, you know, that it’s true.' I mean, with Joel – he’s been an unbelievable player for so long without getting injured, then last year was a little bit of a bumpy year. Zak being a young guy coming in [can] kind of learn from the older guys."

Zinter may be the new kid on the block but he's not the only one who can learn something. As Teller noted, each member of the team's offensive line room brings something to the able ... even Zinter.

"I could learn something from him, you know," said Teller. "Now usually, I’ll learn something like, ‘Hey, why do you put your hands like that or that?’ And he’ll be like, ‘Well, sometimes my hip gets open, and I’ll go like that.’ I’m like, ‘Oh, that’s a great idea.’ So, there’s always stuff you can learn from each other.”

In just a few days time, Zinter has already learned his first lesson from Teller: never stop trying to get better. That mindset has made Teller one of the best interior offensive lineman in football in recent years. It also could help Zinter become of the those future cornerstone players along the Browns o-line.

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